Friday, July 03, 2015

Limping to the Break

The Giants wasted a very impressive return performance by Jake Peavy to lose 2-1 to the Washington Nationals. Things only get harder in Washington now. Next game is Bumgarner v. Strasbourg.

The Giants made a number of roster moves prior to the game. As mentioned here, depth in the outfield was really getting to be a problem, and they addressed that by bringing up Ryan Lollis, a fairly good hitter who has been on a tear in the minors recently. He has speed and can play all three outfield positions. He's said to be an enthusiastic player in the Hunter Pence mold. He bats left.

The Giants really need him or someone right away, as Angel Pagan is obviously hurting and pressing. I think he's in pain all the time, though that's just intuition. But he needs rest, as the Giants limp to the All-Star break with potentially none of their original starting outfield. Fortunately Blanco is hitting very well, Justin Maxwell not so much. If Lollis can contribute right away, he might get them over the hump.

As it is the Giants are wasting Buster Posey's amazing hot streak, and it won't last forever. But he's playing more first base and that's good for the long term. He's not bad at that position, and Brandon Belt is improving as a left fielder.

Apparently Casey McGehee is gone--I missed that--and Tim Hudson is on 15 day DL. The team sent down pitcher Broadway as well as outfielder Ishakawa, and brought up left handed pitcher Josh Osich, who pitched late against the Nats and had a scoreless eighth.

So for the short term at least, Cain and Peavy join the starting rotation, replacing Hudson and Lincecum. Romo is apparently going to be the closer, and Hunter Strickland is likely to be the late innings rightie in Romo's previous role. Along with Cassia. Osich joins Lopez as left hander relief, though manager Bochy said that Osich will pitch to right-side hitters as well, as he did today.

I was puzzled by the news that the Giants paid major money for the contract of an international player, just 18, who plays middle infield and is a contact hitter. Don't they have a bunch of them on the squad now, all pretty young?

The Giants have lost 4 straight now, and like many losing streaks, bad luck is playing a part. But they've been a streaky team all year, and the dynamics keep changing with injuries, as Bochy is forced to change batting order and player positions. Still, with Aoki and Pence both out, it could even be worse. The problem could be if they lose too much ground before the break. They were nearly tied for first just a few days ago, and they're 3.5 out now, with the Dodgers playing tonight.